First night in KK (day 1)

As I was browsing through my old planner, I saw my torn and year-old ferry tickets to Manukan Island – which is one of the usual island destinations at the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. Reminiscing that particular trip, it was definitely one of the more relaxed out-of-the-country trips I’ve ever made.

Kota Kinabalu is a popular destination for mountain climbers who want to conquer Mt.  Kinabalu.  After all, it's the highest peak in Southeast Asia.  Beachcombers will find it a delight that the beach is only 20 minutes away from the city center.  Don't you just love it?  A good beach just 20 minutes away :) For history buffs,  you'll find it interesting to visit Sabah's mosques and historical sites and learn that the locals are mostly from Mindanao.  You gotta learn some history too!  And for the girls, who can say no to shoe shopping?  I got all crazy with VINCCI shoes, they're VNC in the Philippines by the way.  Malaysian food is the best too..Nasi lemak, curry, satay, mee goreng, the list goes on..

They say, if KL is like Manila, KK is more like Cebu. I can’t help but agree J Now getting more curious about KK?

Because I want to share, here’s  Day 1 of 4 of my KK trip.

Day 1

We took a late afternoon flight from Clark to Kota Kinabalu. We got our tickets from Air Asia but Cebu Pacific flies to KK too.

First time to fly with Air Asia

From Manila, we rode the Philtranco bus from Megamall to Clark or more formally known as the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport (DMIA).  For those planning to take a flight from Clark, you can check the bus schedule here. Make sure to make a reservation prior to your trip. By the time of our trip, the fare was around Php250/one way.

sorry, that's the best screen capture I could get hehe

If there’s one thing I hate about travelling abroad – it would be paying the terminal fee (Php600 for NAIA and Php500 for Clark) and Philippine travel tax (Php1620). Sayang, pang-taxi pa yan di ba. Oh well.

Checking in and immigration was swift, so in less than an hour we were already in the departure area waiting for our flight. 

We had a 4pm departure and we arrived in Kota Kinabalu around 6pm. There was a long queue in the immigration but in no time we we’re finally outside the Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA). We took a cab to our accommodation. Taxis in KK don’t use meters, the flag down rate is RM 10 (Php 140+).

We were on a budget trip so we booked Lavender Lodge in the city center. Yes, it was a backpacker hostel but we weren’t disappointed. The rooms are clean and cozy. I even joked to my friends that I feel like we are staying in a Manhattan apartment because of the view from our window – we can see the big glass windows of the inner rooms and the fire exits.

Besides that, the receptionist is a Pinay, Ate Ellie, who always assisted us when it comes to directions, calling cabs, and itineraries.

Our home for 4 days

After settling in, we had dinner at Seri Selera which is just across Lavender Lodge. We had so much fun eating and chatting that we forgot that it was kinda late already. We were supposed to check Warisan Square and the other malls.

Shrimp with pork floss

the culprit why we stayed late

Instead, we headed to the Waterfront where most clubs/bars and coffee shops are located.  If I would describe KK based on our first night, it’s  laid-back and fun.